Current-motor.



1\ 0.. 841,547. PATENTED JAN. 15 1907. J. W. LAURENT.

CURRENT MOTOR. APPLIGATION FILED AUG, 24.1905.

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PATENTED JAN. 15, T907.

J. W. LAURENT.

CURRENT MOTOR. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 24.1905.

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lNVENTO/i M6 272 ma W621i" Arm/m5 rs N9. 841,547. PATENTEDJAN. 15, 1907.

J. W. LAURENT.

CURRENT MOTOR, APPLIGATIGN FILED AUG.24.1905.

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A TTOFf/VE Y S No. 841,547; PATENTED JAN-"155; 1907.

J. W. LAURENT. OURRENT'MOTOR. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 24.1905.

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INVENTOH fo zn7fzazureni A TTORNEYS UNITED STATES PATENT orrron.

JOHN WALLACE LAURENT, OF SPOKANE, WASHINGTON.

CU BRENT-MOTOR.

Specification of Letters Patent.

ead Jan. 15, 1907.

Application filed August 24,1905. Serial No. 275,554.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN WALLACE LAU- BENT, a citizen of the United States, anda 'motors o erated b streams, t e motor. eing especially adapted paratively light current.

resident of Spokane, in-the county of Spo: kane and State of Washington, have invented a new and Improved Current-Motor, of

which the followingis a full, clear, and exact description. I

This invention relates to improvements in the water of flowing for elevating water forirrigating purposes, the object being to" rovide a current-motor of sim le and nove construction that will be se -regulated to therise and fall of the water and that may be operated by a com- Other objects of the invention will appear in the general description.

I will describe a current-motor embodyin' my invention and then point out thenove features in the app)ended claims.

Reference is to e had to the accompanying drawings, forming apart of this. specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

.Figure 1 is a plan ofja current-motor embodying my invention Fig. 2 is an elevation thereof. Fig. 3 is an elevation atright angles to Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a broken sectional detail showing the float, the driv ing-shaft, and parts carried thereby. Fig. 5 is a-face view of one of the blades. Fig. 6 is an end view thereof. Fig. 7 is a section on the line a: a; of Fig. 5. Fig. 8 shows a blade in-lowered position. Fig. 9 shows the same raised. Fig. 10 indicates a releasing-trip employed. Fi 11 shows a means for taking u the slack o the transmission-cable, and Fig. 12 indicates one of the water-elevating buckets.

The frame of the motor comprises a base 1, having u rights or posts 2, connected at the top by a beam 3. he uprights 2 are braced from lateral movement by bars 4, extending upward from the base 1 to connection with t e..-upper-ends of, said uprights, and the frame may be further braced by bars 5, eX tending at an angle from the ends of the beam 3' to the upper ends of standards 6,"

whic'hare connected by a cross-bar 7. Ar-

ranged to move vertically in the frame is a float 8, which, as clearly indicated -1n the arms 14 near the outer ends.

drawings, is of box-like form, closed at the ends, sides, top, and bottom. The float has the spirit ofm invention. Thebearing-plate 13 has a tubu ar or socket member 16, which passes through the hub of the several arms 14, and keyed. in said socket member is the operating-shaft 17, rigidly connected to which is a casting 18, and from this casting trussrods' 19 areextended to connection withthe The shaft 17 passes loosely through an opening in the earn 3 and also loosely throu h abearingplate 20 on said beam, the said caring-plate eing provided with a raceway for hearingballs 21, which engage also in a racewayin a plate 22, havin splined connectiontvith the shaft, so that t e said shaft may slide vertically, but also cause movement ofthe said late 22, and also connected to the shaft and caring upon the plate 22 is the .drivingsheave 23. The sheave has a splinqeonneotion with the shaft, so that the shaft may slide .vertically therethrough, and the arrangement of the plates 20 and22 relieves the float from the Wei ht of the drivingsheave. Having hinge connection with each arm 14 is a blade or paddle 24, the hinged connection being suc as to permit the bladeor paddle to swing from a vertical to a horizontal plane, as will be hereinafter described. Each blade at its outer end is curved or inclined, as at-24 in Figs. 1 and 7, in the direction in which the blade moves. By this construction when the blade falls toward its operative position the incline willreceive the current-pressure immediately, causing the blade to assume its vertical position,

and this is not'found to be the case with a blade straight throughout its length. Each blade is provided at its outer end near the bottbm with a roller '25, designed to engage on the upper side of an inclined plate 26, attached to one end of the float 8, so as to move the. blade upward to its horizontal position and into engagement with a spring-hook 27,

- 26 is a tripping device for releasing the hooks 27 from the blades, permitting said blades to fall 'by gravity into the water to be operated upon by the current. As here shown, this tripping device consists ofa plate 32, extended upward from a base-plate 33, which is provided with slots through which bolts 34 pass into the float. A spring 35 on the float has its free end engaged in an opening in the tripplate 32, and rom the outer .end' of this tripplate a draw-line 36 extends to the shore, the object of which will be hereinafter.described. From the operating-sheave 23 atransmissioncable 37 passesover idlers 38, thence arou'nd' tension-pulleys 39, mounted on a shaft 40, which has its bearings in a frame 41, mounted to slide'verticallyin guide-channels formed in uprights 42, as clearly indicated in 11. The weight'of the'fr'ame and pulleys 39 will take up the slack of thetransmission-cable. If greater weight is required, however, the same may be attached to an eyebolt 43-on the i lowercross-bar of the frame 41. From the pulleys '39 the transmission-cable passesover a sheave 44.on a shaft 45, arranged at the up per end of an elevator tower or frame 46.

On the shaft 45 are sprocket-wheels 47 engaged by endless chains 48, the said chains also passing around sprocket-wheels 49 at the lower portion of the tower. Connected to these endless chains 48 are water carrying or elevating buckets 50, these buckets being of box-like form and open at-the-top.

In the operation certain of. the blades will extend into the water to be operated upon by the current-pressure at one side of the shaft 17. Upon approachin the opposite side of the shaft the blades will be raised to horizontal position by means of the incline 26, as be fore mentioned, and will be held in such position by the hooks 27 until they again reach the opposite end of the float, when the hooks will come in contact with the trip-plate 32 and be sprung out of engagement with the blades, permittin them to fall by avity. Of course as the b ades rotate'motion will be imparted to the shaft 17, causing the operation of the elevating-buckets, which will discharge water into a trough or sluice 51. When it is desired to stop the motor, the

trip-plate 32 is to be drawn outward by means of the draw-line 36, so as to permit the hooks 27 to pass and hold the several blades in horizontal position above the water-level.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent 1. A current-motor comprising a float, arms mounted to rotate on said float, transmission mechanism operated from said arms, blades having hinged connection with the arms, bars connecting the outer .ends.of the arms, flexible connections between the lower edges of said blades .and the bars, s rings havin connection .with the bars an with said exible connections for drawin said flexible connectionsiupward as .the bla es. are moved to horizontal position, means for causing the blades to move to horizontal position, means for locking the blades inhorizontal position at .each revolution of the wheel, and means for automatically releasing the locking devices.

2. A current-motor, comprising afloat, radial arms mounted to rotate on the jfloat, transmission mechanism operated .from said 9 arms, and blades having swingingconnection with the arms, the outer ,portions of said blades being inclined in a direction ,in which the blade is moving. I

3. A current-motor, comprising ;a gfloat, a frame in which .the float is guided, radial arms mounted to rotate on .the-iloat, blades having swinging connection with theanms, rollers on the outer ends of said blades, ,an incline at one end of the float, with which said rollers are designed to .engage to -;move

the blades to horizontal ,position, means ,ifor locking the blades in said horizontal position, means at the oppositeendof theflo ztforreleasing the locking devices and means ,for :05 shifting said releasing means outof releasing position.

4. A current-motor comprising 'a float,

arms mounted to rotate on the float, a shafit extended upward from the arms, 1 'od connec 1 1o 'tions between said shaft and the arms, {a

sheave arran ed ,to rotate-with the-"shaft, but through whic the shaft is vertically fmbv a le by the rise and fall of water, swinging blades 1 carried by the arms, means for .lockingthe blades in inoperative position at eachrotation of the wheel, and means for, releasingthe blades to move to.operative' position.

5. In a current-motor, a :plurality of ,ra dial arms mounted to rotate in .a. horizontal plane, blades carried by thearms, a shaft cit tended upward from the arms, a sheave on.

said shaft, a tower, sprocket-wheels at the upper ortion of said.tower,;sprocket+wheels at the ower portion of said tower, a sheave f2 5 on the shaft of :the ,uppersprocket-wheels,

chains engaging with thGSPIOGkGU-WhQGlS, buckets carried by said chains, a transmission-cable extending from the first-named In testimony whereef I have signed my name to this specification 1n +he presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

sheave to the second-named sheave, i'(i1ers JOHN WALLAJE LAURENT. over which said trensmissi0n-eah1e passes, Witnesses: and tension-rollers with which the cable en- E. S. HILL,

gages. Jom; MAY. 

